Alabama 823 articles

A north Alabama water utility still grappling with perfluorinated chemical pollution allegedly caused by the 3M plant in Decatur is asking the state to front $58 million for the construction of an advanced water filtration system. In 2016, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) included the West Morgan East Lawrence Water Authority on its list of 59 water systems nationwide with levels of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctyl sulfonate (PFOS) too high for safe human consumption. The water authority was one of nine water systems deemed unsafe for too-high levels of industrial pollutants stemming from 3M. The WMEL Water Authority acted on ... Read More

A HH-60 Black Hawk Helicopter owned by Arista Aviation based in Enterprise, Alabama, was en route to an industry trade show in Atlanta last week when it crashed near Tullahoma, Tennessee. The two pilots, Jack Cook and Larry Cornell, both former Army Aviators from Alabama, were injured but were reported to be recovering in stable condition at Vanderbilt University Hospital. They are Arista Aviation employees. The helicopter went down on private property in a rural area around 3 p.m. local time last Thursday. The pilots were able to crawl out of the aircraft and one called 9-1-1. Tullahoma Police Sgt. ... Read More

An accidental chemical release at a Birmingham Water Works facility in Alabama sent dozens of workers to the hospital Wednesday morning and prompted a “shelter in place” warning for residents of the surrounding communities. The accident occurred at the Birmingham Water Works’ Shades Mountain water filtration plant when two chemicals used in the water treatment process, sodium hypochlorite and ferric sulfate, were accidentally mixed, creating what Birmingham Fire & Rescue described as a “hazmat release.” According to Birmingham Water Works, 54 people were taken to Birmingham area hospitals for treatment of non-life threatening injuries. More than a dozen of the ... Read More

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the U.S Department of Justice, and the Jefferson County Board of Health in Alabama have reached a settlement with Drummond Company over allegations that Drummond’s ABC Coke facility north of Birmingham, Alabama, was releasing 10 times the amount cancer-causing benzene into the air than it was reporting. As part of the settlement, Drummond will pay $775,000 in penalties, which will be equally split between the EPA and the Jefferson County Board of Health. The company will also complete a supplemental environmental project so that it can establish semi-annual monitoring for leaks using a thermal imaging ... Read More

As Alabama coal company that was belching more than 10 times the amount of benzene it had been reporting to state and federal regulators will pay $775,000 in penalties. Birmingham, Alabama-based Drummond Company, one of Alabama’s largest coal operations, agreed to the settlement eight years after the Jefferson County Board of Health inspectors and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) discovered that the company’s foundry coke facilities were releasing hazardous levels of benzene into the air. According to the County and the EPA, both of which have gone to great lengths to shield Drummond from the community’s concerns, the company ... Read More

Federal authorities announced a recall of about 100,000 pounds of prepared chicken products sold in retail stores throughout the Southern states due to misbranding and undeclared allergens. The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Food Safety and Inspection Service says that three chicken products made by VICS Acquisition of Harlingen, Texas, and sold under the “happi foodi” or “SE Grocers” brand names contain eggs that are not declared on the product labeling. The products included in the recall were made between Aug. 7 and Oct. 15, 2018, and sold in stores in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, and South ... Read More

Concerns of potential Listeria monocytogenes contamination in fresh produce have prompted ALDI, Costco, Walmart, and other retailers to recall bags of peaches, nectarines, and plums from stores in several states. Listeria is a foodborne pathogen that can cause serious illness and death. The recalled produce was distributed by fruit distributor Jac Vandenberg Inc. of Yonkers, New York. According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the recall affects 1,727 cartons of fresh peaches, 1,207 cartons of fresh nectarines, and 365 cartons of fresh plums. ALDI said in a recall announcement that it has removed recalled peaches, nectarines, and plums ... Read More

Burn injuries and amputations are a couple occupational hazards that no workers should face in the workplace, yet two employees of a Pike County, Alabama food producer were hospitalized within a week of each other after being injured in separate accidents. In a Nov. 23 announcement, the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) said the workplace accidents occurred in the facilities of Southern Classic Food Group LLC. The Brundidge-based manufacturer produces a line of dressings, sauces, confections, beverages, and other products, including Dreamland “Bar-B-Que” sauce and Dale’s marinade. According to OSHA, on Thurs., Aug. 2, one employee suffered burn ... Read More

BP oil spill funds intended to aid in the recovery of the Gulf Coast are ready to be invested in Alabama, Governor Kay Ivey said in an announcement Monday. According to Gov. Ivey, the U.S. Treasury Department has approved Alabama’s plan to invest the funds. The $192.4 million injection of cash will be dispersed among 15 projects proposed by Alabama’s Multiyear Implementation Plan for Gulf Coast Recovery developed by the Alabama Gulf Coast Recovery Council. All of the projects proposed by the AGCR are located in Mobile and Baldwin Counties, which together form Alabama’s entire section of Gulf Coast. The ... Read More

The pilot of a Columbus, Georgia law enforcement helicopter that crashed into an Alabama lake Friday, Nov. 16 was identified as David Hall, a recently retired Columbus Police Department officer and part-time reserve pilot. Mr. Hall, 53, and an unidentified passenger, were killed when the Columbus Metro Narcotics Task Force helicopter they were flying in crashed in Lake Mitchell, a section of the Coosa River in Chilton County, Alabama. Authorities said Mr. Hall and the passenger were on their way to Clanton, Alabama, from Columbus, to swap the Bell OH-58 helicopter for another helicopter that had already undergone routine maintenance ... Read More